The recently re-elected chair of the Peri Urban Councils Victoria says protecting the "right-to-farm" will continue to remain a key plank of the group's lobbying efforts.
Peri Urban Councils Victoria chair, Baw Baw shire councillor Michael Leaney has been re-elected, along with his deputy, Moorabool shire's Moira Berry.
PUCV covers five councils around outer Melbourne, which produce $888 million in agricultural products a year, including 41 per cent of Melbourne's food needs.
Last year, PUCV commissioned a landmark report by Hansen Partnership "Managing Urban Growth in the Peri Urban Area" which covered the way urban growth was planned, managed and funded.
Cr Leaney said the peri-urban regions surrounding Melbourne and Geelong were some of the fastest growing in the country.
"The fast-growing fringe plays an important economic and social role in our state, but proactive investment is essential to manage urban sprawl and maintain the lifestyle and character of these growing communities," Cr Leaney said.
"In 2024, PUCV will be taking an active role in shaping the new National Urban Policy, Plan Victoria and participating in the Victorian Parliamentary inquiry into food supply in peri urban areas," Cr Leaney said.
He said he was not surprised the Victorian parliament was inquiring into food supply.
"With urban growth we see great pressures on horticultural industries and we see great pressures in terms of the right-to-farm, as people move into these areas," Cr Leaney said.
"I think this is going to be a key part of it to ensure we don't actually destroy the breadbasket we have around our cities."
A good example was Wollondilly shire, south of Sydney, NSW, Australia's largest producer of turkeys, he said.
"For them, they have broiler farms all over the place - obviously broiler farms and residents clash, don't they?" he said.
"The shire doesn't want that huge industry destroyed by people moving in and then saying they don't like it and want it changed.
"We'll be taking to government our view the right-to-farm is continued in these peri urban areas."
It was important to ensure farms abutting urban areas were not priced out of the market, he said, particularly when it came to valuations.
"The valuer-general doesn't draw a line in the sand and say this is a farm zone and the property next door is residential - obviously the property in the farm zone goes up in value because of speculation the zone could be changed," he said.
"But the farmers who want to farm are being priced out."
Governments needed to take a more nuanced approach, he said.
"We have made some progress, but the intent is to ensure peri-urban areas are recognised as an entity, so funding doesn't slip through the cracks," he said.
"We are not rural enough, not metro enough, and that's always been a challenge.
"We are making progress on that at a state and federal level, but obviously there is a long road in front of us, to make sure that actually converts to policy and funding."
He said that included grant funding and ensuring shire boundaries were not used "as blunt instruments".
"What I mean by that we have areas areas in peri-urban councils that are going through rapid growth, we need funding for that rapid growth, but we also have farming communities that need to be looked after too.
"As it was said to us, government is not always good at doing nuance, that's one of the challenges of the peri-urban areas - it's not a one-size-fits all."
When it came to Plan Victoria, there were specific questions the peri-urban councils would like asked, so they could be answered accurately, he said.
Andrew Miller
I'm a general reporter with Stock & Land, with a special interest in irrigation issues. I completed my cadetship, with the Age, in 1980. Over my career, I've worked for ABC radio news (Mt Isa, Qld) and at provincial and suburban newspapers.
I'm a general reporter with Stock & Land, with a special interest in irrigation issues. I completed my cadetship, with the Age, in 1980. Over my career, I've worked for ABC radio news (Mt Isa, Qld) and at provincial and suburban newspapers.
